SETH LAWTON.
"Mr. Lawton," said Loammi, "this boy is Scott Walton. His mother was a
cousin of ours. Pa has given him a place in the store, because he hasn't
any money."
Seth Lawton looked at Scott eagerly.
"My boy," he said, grasping Scott's hand, "your mother was my favorite
cousin. Poor Lucy, when I last saw her she was just married to your
father. Is she--is she dead?"
"Yes, sir," answered Scott. "She died when I was but five years old."
"Poor Lucy, poor girl!" said the old man, sighing. "And your father?"
"He is dead, too. He died but a few weeks since on the ship that brought
us over from Liverpool."
"And there were no other children?"
"No, I was the only one."
"Mr. Lawton," said Loammi, who had been listening impatiently, "you
must excuse me, as I must go upstairs and prepare for dinner."
Mr. Lawton scarcely noticed Loammi's unceremonious exit, he was so
occupied with Scott.
"So you are my cousin, too," he said, in a softened voice. "I never saw
you before, but I know I shall like you. You have a look like your
mother."
"I was thought to look like mother," said Scott.
"How old are you?"
"I shall be sixteen in a few weeks."
"You are young to be an orphan. I judge from what your cousin says that
you were left poor."
"Yes, father was unfortunate. He was so honest himself that he allowed
people to cheat him."
"There are too many such cases. But I am glad that Cousin Ezra has
opened his heart and given you a home."
"Yes," said Scott, briefly.
He was not disposed to be ungrateful, but it did not seem to him that he
owed a very large debt of gratitude to Mr. Little, who had taken all
his money and merely gave him his board in return for his services in
the store.
"Do you find your cousin--what is his name?--a pleasant companion?"
"Loammi and I do not see much of each other, Mr. Lawton."
Seth Lawton looked at Scott shrewdly.
"I am not surprised to hear it," he said. "Loammi reminds me of his
father very strongly."
"He looks upon me as a poor relation," continued Scott, smiling.
"Do you mind that much?"
"A little. I don't mean to be poor always."
"A wise determination. So you have a place in the store?"
"Yes, sir."
"How do you like that?"
"Very much. I like business. I don't have much to do with Mr. Little
there, but the superintendent, Mr. Allen, is just, and encourages me to
do my best."
"I am glad to hear that. Do you think Ezra is prosperous?"
"I should think so. He seems to be doing a good business."
"Does he strike you as a good manager?"
"He keeps down expenses. The clerks say that he pays poorer wages than
anyone in the trade."
"That isn't always the sign of a good manager," said Seth Lawton,
slowly. "Clerks will always work better for a generous employer. So, on
the whole, Ezra may be considered well-to-do?"
"Yes, sir."
"I am always glad to hear that my friends--and relatives are
prospering."
"You don't look as if you were very prosperous yourself," thought Scott.
"I suppose you, too, are a poor relation."
"How much does Ezra pay you?"
"My board."
"That wouldn't be bad if you were a stranger. But how do you manage
about clothes?"
"My father left me fifty dollars. Mr. Little took charge of it, and I
suppose he will buy me clothing out of it."
"Humph!" said Seth Lawton, dryly. "He seems to put everything on a
business basis."
Just then the door opened, and Ezra Little entered the room. He was
prepared to see Mr. Lawton, Loammi having apprised him of his arrival.
He came forward, eying Mr. Lawton closely.
"He's as poor as poverty!" he said to himself. "He doesn't seem to have
made much of a success."
"This is a surprise, Seth," said he, offering his hand coldly. "I had
almost forgotten you."
"Very natural, Cousin Ezra," said the old man, smiling.
"Where have you been all these years?"
"I have been a wanderer, Ezra. I have been in America for the last few
years. I came from Michigan last."
"Have you married?"
"No; I am alone."
"Perhaps it is just as well. You have been at less expense."
"True. You, however, have married, and, as I judge, are prosperous."
"Yes, I have a good business on Eighth Avenue," said Ezra Little,
complacently. "I haven't been a rolling stone."
"Like me?"
"Well, yes, like you."
"And so you have gathered some moss."
"Yes; I think it a duty to succeed."
"If possible."
"A man can succeed if he goes to work the right way," said Ezra,
dogmatically.
"Well, perhaps so," admitted Seth, slowly.
"How long have you been in New York?"
"I arrived last week."
"From Michigan?"
"Yes."
"Do you plan to stay here?"
"Well, I have not quite decided. I took a little while to get settled,
and then I looked you up in the directory. But I have found more than I
bargained for. I did not know that any of Lucy's family were in
America," and he nodded in the direction of Scott.
"Yes," answered Ezra, with a slight frown; "Scott's father took it into
his head to come to America when he was in the last stages of
consumption. He died on the passage leaving his son to the cold mercies
of the world."
"And you kindly took him into your home?"
"Well, I couldn't see him starve," said Mr. Little, ungraciously. "So I
gave him a place in my store."
"I hope he is doing well there."
"Oh, yes, he is doing well enough. The work is not hard."
"So that you receive some equivalent for your kindness."
"Oh, I could get a boy to do the same work for three dollars a week."
"Well, Ezra, I think you won't lose anything by your kindness to an
orphan relative."
"I will do what I can for him, but I can't undertake to help any more
poor relations."
His tone was significant, and Seth understood it, but his feelings did
not seem to be hurt.
"Possibly you were thinking of me, Ezra," he said, mildly.
"Are you a poor relation?" asked Ezra Little, bluntly.
"That is hard to tell. Ideas of poverty are comparative. I have always
supported myself, and I hope I shall continue to do so. In a great city
like this I can surely find something to do."
"I think you would better have remained in Michigan. What were you doing
there?"
"I kept books for a man in the lumber business," answered Seth.
"You couldn't get a chance to keep books here. Your age would be against
you, for one thing, Seth."
"I am only fifty-six, Ezra."
"That is old when you are seeking a position. I hope you have some
money to fall back upon."
"I have a little, and then I was always able to live frugally."
"That is wise. You might, perhaps, expect that I would give you a place
in my store, but you would not do for the dry-goods business."
"I don't think I should," said the old man, candidly. "I have never been
accustomed to very close confinement."
"Pa, supper's ready!" announced Loammi, opening the door.
"Will you walk out and take supper with us, Seth?"
"Thank you, Ezra. It will be pleasant to sit down with relations. It is
many years since I have done so."
Seth Lawton was introduced to Mrs. Little, who greeted him kindly,
though, like her husband and son, she looked upon him as a poor
relation. She had a better disposition than they, and was not so worldly
minded.
Seth Lawton was seated next to Scott on one side of the table. Opposite
sat Loammi.
"Put the two poor relations together, ma," he had said to his mother,
beforehand. "Pa'll have his hands full if any more come to the city."
"They are not to blame for their poverty," returned Mrs. Little.
"I should hate to be poor," said Loammi, emphatically.
"Your father and I were poor once."
"But you got bravely over it. That's because pa was smart. This old
man--Seth Lawton--looks as if he wasn't worth a hundred dollars, and he
must be ten years older than pa."